The show is based on George R. R. Martin's best-selling 'A Song of Ice and Fire' novels, which, admittedly, I have never read. Still, I'm excited about the possibilities for this series. HBO did family drama right ('Six Feet Under'), reinvented the Western ('Deadwood'), gave us a wonderfully quirky vampire show ('True Blood'), and the greatest police drama of all time ('The Wire'). I can't wait to see what an epic HBO fantasy series will look like.

The main cast includes 'Lord of the Rings' vet Sean Bean, one-time 'Narnia' denizen Peter Dinklage, former Sarah Connor Lena Headey and future Conan the Barbarian Jason Momoa in a recurring role. The story is epic in scope, chronicling the conflicts of kings, queens, knights and rebels in the mythic terrain of 'Westeros'.

If HBO does this right it could be something very good. Martin's books are not your average fantasy. The have sex, violence, incest, and poltical intrigue. The magic is minimal and the books work more as alternate history than fantasy but they're still excellent reads.